It started out so simply. A wonderful year of bounty had followed the suffering years before. These were the survivors. The poverty, loneliness, illness and death, deprivation and hardship had been replaced with hope and joy and bounty amidst hard work and harmony. A grateful heart is something to cherish. The Pilgrims in the new world just wanted to say thank you to the Lord. And they wanted to share the joy of their bounty with those around them, the Indians (Native Americans if you will) who had, in friendship, helped these new neighbors. I wonder if they had seen the Pilgrims rejoice in the midst of difficulty the way that Christians are supposed to?

There have always been hard times. There have always been times of rejoicing. There are seasons of sorrow and seasons of joy. Yes these are times of difficulty, but we will survive. Developing the habit of thanksgiving for all things and in all seasons takes the power of the Holy Spirit in a willing and obedient heart. 

It is time to rejoice again. It is time to give Thanks. Not for things but to Someone. I get so tired of the newspaper and television ads, the humanistic garble that tells us what to be thankful for but refuses to acknowledge that there is a Living God from Whom all blessings flow. He is the One we are to be thankful to. The Lord our God and His Son the Lord Jesus who died for our sins in order for us to have Someone to be thankful to, He is the One to whom we give thanks.
I like the lists that we have been doing. It really is important to remember all the marvelous ways that the Lord has blessed us, all the things to say thank you for. BUT, right now, this day and for the days to follow remember Who it is, to Whom we are to be thankful. Think on God, my Pilgrim sisters, my Pilgrim friends. Begin the habit of a grateful heart to the One from whom every good and perfect gift comes.

(no this isn't our street)
Autumn is here in full color. The trees that avenue our street are bright red.
 I miss everyone here and wanted to take a break and come and say hello.  My brain is a little on tilt with writing, but I am fairly pleased with the progress.  Little stories have come up from time to time. I would think to myself. "Oh, I need to blog about that." Then the tyranny of time and work would take over and it would pass.
This morning my husband told me of a little story. This I had to tell you.
My husband went to a little cafe for a morning meeting that didn't really happen this morning. He sat and waited for the person he hoped to see, but he never came. He spent the time praying and reading and watching the people around him.
A woman was sitting at a table with her son.  He was about ten or eleven years old,  and was sitting in her lap.  He held her tightly around the neck as they talked. They were starting their day with breakfast there, and it was really obvious to everyone, that this was a wonderful mom, whose son loved her dearly.
After a bit, someone she knew came up to her and started chatting. "See you at church." was the final bit of the conversation. The waitress, who had been watching this scene, came up to the mother. "Where do you go to church?" she asked. The woman told her. Out came a piece of paper and pencil. "And what time do you meet? the waitress asked, and wrote down the answer. That was it. A perfect example of unintentional, intentional, lifestyle evangelism.
That woman wasn't trying to evangelize anyone. But she was demonstrating the value of Christ based parenting in front of the world. I don't know if this little cafe is a regular place for this mom to come, or if this was a special once off time. Which ever it was, Jesus showed up.What this mother had, this waitress wanted.
What kind of unintentional, intentional Christianity shows up in your life when you are just living your day to day life? Are you habitually walking in the Light, as a child of Light in this really dark dark world?  If you are, then you may barely recognize the beam of brilliant light that is shining from you to those around you.
Shine Jesus Shine.

I have a fear. It is the fear of failure in very old age. There is longevity in my genes, and I anticipate a long life. The very idea of embarrassing the Lord who saved me as I grow old, is something I passionately don't want any part of.

Muriel is a lady in her nineties. She and her husband were missionaries for many years. A widow now, her face is still a ring of smiles, the lines on her face have grown to accommodate that. Her bright blue eyes and white hair sparkle. Burt was a musician. Burt played the organ and Muriel the piano at the little Chapel we used to go to on Sundays. When Burt went to be with Jesus, Muriel kept playing. She still gives music lessons. The children in the church play instruments and when it is time for them to do their ministry of song, she encourages each one with a gladsome heart. Muriel, was one of the original Tupperware ladies. Newspaper articles have been written about her. Muriel has crowds of people over to her house every Sunday after church. She makes little place cards and has intricate rules as to where people are to sit. Singles are never permitted to sit on the end of the table. Young people are always to sit next to the older ones. Young wives and husbands were to sit near to the older couples. Everyone brings food, but Muriel still does a bit of the cooking. Everything gets saved in Tupperware containers. The conversation is always about the Lord. She tells inspiring stories about her life, and asks questions that keep things lively, but always as it relates to the Lord. She is an expert at  "provoking one another to love and good works."
I want to be a Muriel when I am old.

Miriam was a great woman in Israel. She had watched over her baby brother while he was cradled in the Nile. As an Egyptian princess discovered him, she was quick and intelligent in her response, even going to so far as to make a suggestion to royalty. She had begun early in her leadership abilities. We see her as a much older woman as she grabbed her tamborine and danced before the people on the other side of the Red Sea..  There were about 2 -3 million Jews who went through and she lead the women as a part of the celebration response to the victory that God gave them. What she sang is called "The Song of the Sea". She and her two brothers were credited with leading this vast population of God's people. She was a prophetess, one of only a very few women so described in Scripture.
But Miriam didn't finish well. When the meek and much loved Moses, the ordained leader of God's people is widowed. he took as his second wife, a dark skinned Cushite (Ethiopian), and Miriam objected. She was jealous of her own position and questioned the authority of Moses. She began a whispering campaign that led her brother Aaron into the scheme. She was a proud Jewish woman, with a not so subtle racism. Miriam felt that she had as much right to lead the people as anybody. She instigated a rebellion. Ultimately she questioned God's authority, something satan once did which led to the misery of the ages. The Lord had to respond. He ordered the three of them outside where the pillar of cloud awaited them. There He struck Miriam with leprosy.
Proud Miriam. Proud, disgraced Miriam. Piper suggests that God's response is "Okay, you like white skin, you get white skin. How do you like this white skin." Of course God didn't say that, but it could be implied. And Miriam had white leprosy, as white as snow. It is a shame for her to even show her face. Aaron then went in repentance and implored Moses to intercede on their sister's behalf. It is profound to me that it isn't Miriam that does this, but her brother. Five little words later, and she is healed. "O Lord, make her well." Moses doesn't weep and go on for hours, he just said five little words. The Lord, who is still very angry, healed her but told them, that as a Father, He must discipline her. And for seven days she remained outside the camp she so longed to lead.  She is unclean, an outcast. Everyone knew it. The whole two million of them knew it and waited. They waited an entire week before they could move on towards the Promised Land. I can only imagine the whispering and fear that must have rippled through the camp those seven days.
We never hear anything else about Miriam until she dies. It is believed that Miriam lived another thirty-eight years wandering the desert. Then we are told, she died, in a desert place where there was no water. The result of her life which started in a story about the water of the Nile, and included a "Song of the Sea", ended in the dust just a few short months away from the Land of Plenty.
I don't want to be a Miriam.
I want to be a Muriel. I want to be an on-my-knees in the morning, humble servant with rings of smile-wrinkles welcoming everyone to supper.